Delegates: Mr. Addo, Mr. Poku-Bonsu
35. Mr. Addo (Ghana) said that Ghana, a developing country that continued to struggle with poverty, had taken economic measures to help youth, in particular by establishing a Youth Fund, which provided soft loans to young people who had studied under apprenticeship programmes, especially in agribusiness. In order to control youth unemployment, the Government had established a national youth employment programme in 2006, through which more than 100,000 young people had found work in various sectors of the economy.
36. Education remained a priority for his Government, which had conferred the right to free, compulsory primary education in its 1992 Constitution. An education trust fund had been established in 1994 to boost investment in education, and a State-funded feeding programme had been set up for primary schoolchildren. The infrastructure of many schools had been improved, and new schools had been built in response to the increased enrolment rates. In some primary and secondary schools, compulsory computer training courses were being provided on a pilot basis.
37. The health infrastructure in Ghana had been much improved. The Government had set up a health insurance system, which had modernized health services throughout the country and was benefiting young people. The Ghana AIDS Commission had intensified its education programmes for youth, focusing on the prevention of HIV/AIDS and managing high-risk behaviour.
38. Youth groups involved in environmental protection had sprung up in schools and were tackling issues such as climate change, pollution, erosion and other environmental concerns.
39. Mr. Poku-Bonsu (Ghana) said that there was still too little investment in initiatives to help young people start enterprises, and that the Ghanaian private sector remained reluctant to invest in youth development programmes.
40. As volunteerism was still the most accessible type of work, young Ghanaians were asking for more logistical and financial support for their organizations, and they called on the competent United Nations bodies to facilitate exchanges among the young people of all countries.
41. Young Ghanaians wanted to participate in formulating policies and taking decisions that affected them.
UN Doc.: A/C.3/63/SR.4
Cite as:
UN Doc.: A/C.3/63/SR.4, 7 October 2008, p. 5, Youth Delegate Search: https://youthdelegatesearch.org/ghana-2008/, doi: 10.17176/20221018-194439-0.